Film-feeding apparatus



June 7, 1927.

- F. J. KINCADE FILM FEEDING APPARATUS Filed June 11, 1924 5 Sheets-Sheet l llHl MIN v INVENTOR F km do.

4 4 ATTORNEYS Juhe 7,1927. 1,631,137

F. J. KINCADE FILM FEEDING APPARATUS Filed June 11; 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 w A. E! Y 44-v ATTORNEYS June 7, 1927. 1,631,137

F. J.KINCADE FILM FEEDING APPARATUS Filed June 11. 1924 3 Sheets-Shee 3 11' i'l 1 MM 1 v I (26 1 5 35 Z4 7 ATT Y,

Patented dune 7, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

"FORREST JAMES KINCADE, OF NEW YORK, N- Y., ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS TO CHARLES I. LINK, 01? DENVER, COLORADO.

FILM-FEEDING APPARATUS.

Application filed June 11, 1924'. Serial N 0. 719,240.

This invention relates to film-feedin ,apparatus for motion picture machines. ore particularly, the invention relates to filmfeeding apparatus in which the film is un- 6 wound from the center of the feed, or maga zine, coil and it is directed to the provision of an improved film-feeding apparatus.

F ilm-feeding apparatus of the center feed type eliminates the necessity of rewinding the film between successive exhibitions thereof thus saving the time and expense of rewinding, besides substantially one-half of the mechanical wear on the film.

An extremely practical apparatus for feeding a film strip from the center of a coil comprises a centrally apertured pan or receptacle so mounted as to constitute a freel rotatable horizontal coil support for the eed or magazine coil. Projecting upwardly through the aperture in the coil supportfor a distance somewhat greater than the width of the film is a stationary annular collar structure, or film feed cage, of open frame or cage-like construction and includ- T ing a plurality of friction-reducing rollers spaced substantially in a circle and journaled in' this frame-work. These spaced friction-reducing rollers coact with the upper and lower margins of the innermost convolution of the film coil allowing the coil to rotate with relatively little friction. The inner convolution of the film strip is drawn over one of a pair ofthe rollers by a feed.

sprocket, located within the film feed cage which feeds the strip to a twisted loop, also within the feed cage, from which it is withdrawn at an equal rate by a second feed sprocket located within the projection apparatus and driven synchronously with the first mentioned feed sprocket. By means of the twisted loop the direction of the film is changed and the film carried. through a fire-protecting tube at substantially right angles to the plane of the coil, to the projection apparatus, after .passing through which it is wound in the ordinary manner upon a receiving reel.

In this type of center feed apparatus the magazine coil support carrying the film coil is rotated onlyby the pull on the film exerted by the feed sprocket. As the support is freely rotatable, and, since the support together with the coil of film possesses considerable inertia, when the rotation of the ,feeding mechanitm is stopped forany to rotate a certain distance.

reason, the coil and support may continue This rotation continued after the feeding of the film strip has ceased, will tend to carry the portion of the film strip which is about to enter the gate, past the gate rollers of the film feed cage and will tend to double the film back upon itself, thus making it tend to bulge inwardly between the adjacent rollers of the cage. Heretofore, the film feed cage, that 1s, the cage-like support for the collar rollcrs, has been so constructed that the film, under the conditions above described, could easily enter between adjacent rollers, and be injured thereby to a greater or less degree.

A further and more aggravating difficult has been encountered in the operation of these machines, particularly in the larger sizes carrying, for example, a film strip 2,000 feet in length. This difficulty is that of the elimination of loops which tend to form in the film strip as it is unwound from the magazine coil in machines of this type. These loops may contain only a single bight of film or a number of bights. The loop which most commonly forms contains two bights, and therefore may be likened to a loops are formed in the film, there is a tendency for them to be drawn through the gateway to the feed sprocket which results 1n the film becoming almost hopelessly entangled so that it is necessary to cut out and destroy from 25 to feet of film in order to clear the machine.

By laborious and painstaking investigation the present applicant has overcome these difficulties and provided a center-feed film-feeding apparatus which is commercially operable in all sizes and which un- Winds the film strip from the center of the coil with no more (and probably less) wear on the film strip than it receives in passing through a projection machine which unwinds the strip from the outside of the coil.

According to this invention a plurality of spaced friction-reducing rollers are disposed in the form of a circle and constitute an annular bearingon which the magazine coil unwinds, and a guard member which is preferably of approximately the width of the film strip; is provided between rollers. This guard member serves a double purpose. It efit'ectively prevents any bulges,

loops, or bights of loops which may form in the film from entering between the rollers, whereby it would be almost inevitably damaged, and it provides an extremely simple and rigid support for the rollers. A gateway is formed in this guard member which is of suficient width toallow the innermost convolution of the film strip to be fed in a straight line to the feed sprocket, but which is also suliiciently narrow to positively prevent the entrance of the bight of a loop of film. To further assist in preventing the entrance of a bight of film into this gateway, the trailing gate rollers are made substantially smaller in .diameter (almost onehalf) than the leading gate rollers.

Cooperating with these means for preventing the entrance of' a bight of filmito the feed sprocket, and also constituting an essential part of the invention, "are means which comprise one or more pockets formed in the guard member for removing the loops from the film as the film is drawn around the outside surface of the guard member and cage rollers. To form these loop-removing pockets the guard member is curved inwardly between a pair of adjacent cage rollers so as to form a device for arresting the progress of a bight of the loop of the film and allow the film to be pulled out straight without damage to itself. One of these loop-removing pockets is preferably positioned adjacent to, and just in advance of, the gatewa through which the film strip enters the feed sprocket. Another loop-removing pocket is preferably placed substantially opposite to this pocket. Two loopremoving pockets placed in this manner have been found to be very effective in assisting in the removal of loops from the film, but these pockets may be located in other positions around the circumference of the guard member, or additional pockets may be employed, as is necessary to meet existing conditions.

By a study of the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the preferred embodiment of my invention, together with the following description thereof, a better understanding of these and other novel features of-the invention will be had. In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a planview of a center-feed film-feeding apparatus embodying my invention and showing the bight of a loop in the film" opposite the gateway to the feed sprock t, the hinged cover being turned back or this purpose;

Fig. 2 is a view in section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows, but with the cover in place;

Fig. 3 is a view, partially in transverse section on the line 3.3 of Fig. 2 and partially in plan, illustrating the engagement of the leading bight of an S-shaped loop with one of the loop-removing pockets by which the loop is eventually removed from the film;

Fig. 4 is a View in section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged view in transverse secglzion also taken on line 33 of Fig. 2; an

Fig. 6' is a view in side elevation of the film feed cage removed from the apparatus.

Referring to these drawings, and particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, there is here represented a film-feeding apparatus of the center-feed type embodying the principles of the present invention. This apparatus comprises a pan or receptacle 10 constituting the support for the coil of film which is to be fed to the projection apparatus (not shown). The magazine coil support 10 is carried upon the-frame 11 of the film-feeding apparatus by means of a plurality of ball bearings 12 which roll in the raceways 13 and 14 secured to the coil support 10 and to the frame 11 respectively, and thus render the coil support freely rotatable. A ball retainer 15 is provided for the purpose of keeping the balls 12 equally spaced around the raceways.

I The coil support 10 has a central aperture 16 and projecting upwardly through this aperture is the film feed cage 17 which is secured to an upwardly projecting boss 18 mounted upon the frame 11. This feed cage, or collar, constitutes an annular hearing for the film coil. The coil rotates on this bearing with the innermost convolution of the coil rolling on the friction-reducing rollers provided in the cage in a manner to be described in detail later on. A casin 19 which is providedwith a cover 20 hinged thereto at 21 completely surrounds the mag-. azine coil support and constitutes a fire-protecting enclosure for the magazine coil. Cover 20 is easily lifted for the purpose of introducing a coil of film, and it has a window 22 (Fig. 1) through which the amount of film remaining in the magazine may be observed.

Referring now to Figs. 5 and 6, the film feed cage 17 comprises a main frame or guard member 23 around the top and bottom of which are located a plurality of friction-reducing rollers 24 and 25. These rollers are mounted in pairs placed on opposite sides of the member 23 and are arranged to rotate loosely on the ends of pins which are driven through member 23 and project a short distance from the upper and lower surfaces thereof respectively. Rollers 25 are entirely similar to and serve the same purpose as rollers 24, but they are reduced in size in order to provide somewhat more space in their vicinity within the interior of the film feed cage.

A relatively narrow gateway 26 is formed in member 23 and is provided with pairs of gate rollers 27 and 28 by which the film may be passed from the outside to the inside of the film feed cage. The pair of gate rollers 27 is of substantially the same diameter as the rollers of pairs 24, and the trailing pair of gate rollers 28 is preferably considerably smaller in diameter, say, for example, about one-half this size, so as to assist in preventing the entrance of a bight or loop. of film through the gateway.

Frame 23 constitutes a guard member for positively preventing the entrance of bulges or loops of the film strip between adjacent pairs of friction-reducing rollers, and is so shaped, as may be seen in the sectional views in the drawings, that its outer surface is normally out of contact with the film. The film normally engages only the friction-reducing rollers, which are relatively narrow and cooperate ,with a relatively narrow surface along the top and bottom edges of the film strip, but, should loops or bulges form in the film which would tend to enter between the rollers, such bulges or loops are engaged by the guard member 23 and prevented from entering within the film cage.

Between the leading gate rollers 27 and the adjacent pair of rollers 24, the frame or guard member 23 is curved inwardly to form a loop-removing pocket 29 adjacent to and just in advance of the gateway 26. A sec-v ond loop-removing pocket 30 is similarly formed in the member 23 approximately opposite to pocket 29. The operation of these pockets will appear later.

In order to "retain in place the friction- 'reducing rollers mounted on the upper surface of member 23, there is provided a removable ring 31 which is held in place by the three screws 32 which pass through distance pieces 33 and are tapped into member 23. This ring is preferably of the same gen eral contour as the guard member and frame 23, but may be circular in shape if desired. For a like purpose a circular ring 34 is secured to the bottom of member 23 by the screws 35. This bottom ring also constitutes the base of the film. feed cage 17 and the cage is secured as a whole to the boss 18 on the frame 11 by means of the three screws 36 passing through suitable holes in lower ring 34 and tapped into boss 18.

Within the feed cage 17, and preferably relatively close to the inner periphery thereof, there is mounted the tilm feed sprocket 37 (Figs. 1, 3, 4, and 5) which is provided with the usual teeth for engaging perforations along each marginal edge of the film strip. This sprocket is mounted so as to be driven by a vertical shaft 38 simultaneously with one or more similar feed sprockets (not shown) with which the projection apparatus is provided. The sprocket 37 is located so as to draw the film strip in a straight line from the leading gate rollers 27 (see Figs. 1 and 3), the trailing gate rollers 28 being sufiiciently reduced in size to allow the film to assume a straight line at this point and yet reduce the size of the opening forming the gateway-26 so as to exclude the possibility of a bight of film being drawn within this gateway,

In order to hold the film in contact with the sprocket 37 there is provided the guide roller 39. This guide roller is carried on a spindle which is mounted upon an L-shaped lever 40 (see Figs. 5 and 4) pivoted at 41. The spindle is provided at its upper end with the knurled handle 42 by which the guide roller may be moved away from the feed sprocket in order to facilitate the threading of the film through the machine. A flat spring 43 coacts with one end of lever 40 to hold the guide I roller against the sprocket, or in open position, to facilitate the threading of the film.

The film strip is led well around the body of sprocket 37, where it passes around a vertical post 44, called the loop-setter. This post is fixed to the bottom of casing 19 and is preferably provided with a roller so as to reduce the wear on the film if the film should come in contact with it during operation. After. passing around post 44, the film passes into a twisted loop 45, by which the direction ofthe film is changed from the plane of the magazine coil and directed downwardlyv between a pair of loosely rotat ing guide rollers 46 which guard the entrance to the fire-protecting chute 47 by which the film is led to the projection apparatus.

A stripper 48 is mounted upon a stationary vertical post 49 in proper position with respect to sprocket 37, and a flat polished metal plate 50, forming an extension of stripper 48, extends beyond post 49 and is rigidly mounted with its outer end in close proximity to the leading gate roller 27. Plate 50 and stripper 48, therefore, form a division or guard between the film entering and that leaving the sprocket roller 37.

In operating this apparatus, the coil of film 51 is placed within the horizontal coil support 10 and the entire coil is thus supported in freely rotatable position. The inner end of the film strip is led over the leading gate roller 27, around sprocket 37, around the loop-setter post 44. and through the fire chute 47. The film is pulled tightly around the post 44, and when released will dispose itself free of the post 44 and naturally assume aloop of the proper size so that the direction of the film is changed without damage to the film. for post 44, it would be possible for the operator to draw the film too tightly and form a twisted loop with so sharp a bend or curvature that the film would be injured during the twisting. Moreover, if the twisted loop If it were not 1 bearing for the film coil.

44 is too large, the film will dragfagainst the interior of the feed cage 17 and be damaged thereby. Thus the post 44 serves as a means by which the operator necessarily always forms a loop 45 of proper size.

After the feeding of the film from coil 51 has removed a comparatively large portion of the coil, there is so much space within the coil support 10 that the film strip sometimes becomes formed into loops which must be removed before reaching the gateway 26 to pass to the feed sprocket. Such a loop, whichv is of a flattened S shape, is shown in the film stri I in Fig. 1.

The loop which has formed here has two bights 52 and 58. This loop was formed probably several revolutions of the coil support 10 ahead of the position shown in Fig. 1. In the position shown in this figure, the loop has been carried around by frictional engagement with the inner convolution 54 and the convolution 55 just outside of the loop until the convolution 54 has become the innermost convolution of the coil and moves I incontact with the friction-reducing rollers of the film cage which form an annular Convolution 54 is being drawn over gate roller .27 onto sprocket ,37 and this figure indicates the passage of the bight 52 of the loop by the gateway 26. Because of the relatively narrow gateway 26, the relatively large size of the leading roller 27 and the relatively small size of the trailing gate roller 28, the bight is guided outwardly away form the gate.

As the feeding of the film continues, bight 52 passes on in the direction of the arrow, and during the next revolution, the loo in the film is in contact with the. rollers o the feed cage. Here the guard member 23 prevents the entrance of the bight 52 between adjacentpairs of rollers. If it were not for i the presence of guard member 23 the bight 52 would become entangled in the cage and the film would be damaged. As the loop progresses around the cage, bight 52 is brought first to the loop-removing pocket 30 which will probably arrest thehmovement of the bight and initiate the removal of the loop from the film strip.

If pocket 30 does not arrest the bight 52,

it is arrested by pocket 29 just before the loop is fedthrough gateway 26. Hence the loop is always removed either by one or the other of these pockets, or by both of them, these pockets serving to stop the motion of the forward or leading bight of the loop so that the loop may be pulled out of the film by the portion of the strip which is being drawn in through the gateway by the feed sprocket. I

The loop shown in Fig. 1 represents a case which is not so often'met with in practice as that shown in Fig. 3. Ihe loop of Fig. 1

has been crowded together by the pressure of the fewturns of strip outside of the loop -until the bights of the loo-p are quite sharp so that they have a greater tendency to enter the gateway and so that there is somewhat more friction in pulling the loop out of the strip. In the more open loop of Fig; 3, which represents perhaps a more usual formation, it will be easier to follow the contour of thefilm and understand the operation of the loop-removing pockets.

In Fig. 3 this more open 100 has made substantially one-half of a revoliition more than the loop shown in Fig. 1, that is, it has passed the gateway 26 and its leading bight 56 has entered pocket 30, being forced into this pocket by the natural resiliency of the film strip itself and by the pressure of the turns on the outside of the loop and in contact with it. This stops the forward move ment of the loop. The innermost convolution 57 of the coil is being drawn in over gate rollers 27 by feed sprocket 37 and is therefore moving in contact with the circular row of rollers 24 of the feed cage which form the annular bearing for the coil. Passing around the outsideof these rollers as far as pocket 30, the innermost convolution 57 then rides outwardly over the outside of bight 56 and of the loop and draws film from the trailing bight 58 of the loop.

. In this manner the length of the loop is reduced by the rolling out of bight 58' produced by the feed of the innermost convolution to the feed sprocket. When bight 58 is rolled as far as pocket 30, the film is entirely straightenedout, the loop being entire ly removed. I

If, in the passage of the loop around the outside of the roller cage, the bight 56 is not caught by pocket 30, it is caught by pocket 29 and the operation of removing the loop is substantially the same as just described. IVhen the loo is extraordinarily long, one of the bights is caught by pocket 30 and a portion of the loop may be rolled around from this pocket toward the gateway and form another bight which is held in pocket 29. Then the trailing loop is pulled or IOU rolled out as above described, followed by I the pulling out of the other two loops which are in theloop-removing pockets. It is unnecessary to describe all the loop formations which may take place, but the improved film feed cage acts efiectively to positively remove all loops before the film isdrawn within the cage over the feed sprocket, without any damage whatever to the surface of the film.

By enibodyin my improved mechanism in a centerfeed film-feeding apparatus, the positive removal of any loops or bulges which may form in the film, and the prevention of such loops from becoming entangled with the operating mechanism, greatly improves the operation of machines of th s "ployed and the apparatus Will operate in an entirely satisfactory manner.

I claim:

1. In a film-feeding apparatus for feeding a film strip from the center of a coil, 21 plurality of circularly spaced friction-reducing rollers constituting a bearing about which the film coil rotates, and a guard member for bridging the spaces between a plurality of the rollers for preventing the entrance of the film therebetween, said guard member having a film loop-removing pocket formed therein by which a loop formed in the fillll strip is removed as it passes around the exterior of said member.

2. In a film feeding apparatus for feeding a film strip from the center of a coil, a circular row of spaced friction-reducing rollers forming an annular bearing about which the film coil rotates, a guard member associated with said rollers to prevent the undesired passage of the film strip therebetween, said guard member having a relatively narrow gateway through which the inner convolution of the coil is drawn to the interior of the row of bearing rollers, and said member having a film loop-removing pocket formed therein by which a loop formed in the film strip is removed as it passes around the exterior of said member.

3. In a film-feeding apparatus for feeding a film strip from the center ofa coil, a circular row of spaced friction-reducing rollers forming an annular hearing about which the film coil rotates, a guard member associated with said rollers to prevent the undesired passage of the film strip therebetween, said guard member having a relatively narrow gateway through which the inner convolution of the coil is drawn to the interior of the row of bearing rollers, said guard member having a fihn loop-removing pocket therein adjacent said gateway by which a loop formed in the film strip is removed as it passes around the exterior of said member.

4. In a film-feeding apparatus for feeding a film strip from the'center of a coil, a circular row of spaced, friction-reducing rollers forming an annular bearing about which the film coil rotates, a guard member associated with said rollers to prevent the undesired passage of the film strip therebetween, said guard member having a relatively narrow gateway through which the inner convolution of the coil is drawn to the interior of the row of bearing rollers, and said guard member having a film loop-re moving pocket formed therein adjacent the gateway, and a second similar pocket substantially opposite the gateway, said pockets serving to remove a loop formed in the film strip as it passes around the exterior of the uard member. i i

5. A film-feeding apparatus for feeding a film strip from the center of a coil comprising means for rotatably supporting the coil including, a plurality of stationary circularly disposed friction-reducing rollers for coacting with the innermost convolution of the coil, a film feed sprocket disposed within said rollers for drawing the innermost convolution of the coil over one of the rollers, a stationary guard for the film as it passes from said roller to the sprocket, and a second stationary guard member disposed between adjacent rollers for preventing the undesired passage of the film strip therebetween.

6. In an annular bearing for a center feed film-feeding apparatus, a substantially circular element of approximately the width of a film strip and having spaced journaling means at the top and bottom edges thereof, friction-reducing rollers carried by said journaling means and coacting respectively with the upper and lower margins of the film strip, the rollers at the top being free to rotate independently of those at the bottom, and a relatively narrow gateway through said element to permit the film to be drawn to the interior thereof. 7. In an annular bearing for a center feed film-feeding apparatus, a substantially circular element of approximately the width of a film strip and having spaced journaling means at the top and bottom edges thereof, friction-reducing rollers carried by said journaling means and coacting respectively with the upper and lower margins of the film strip, a relatively narrow gateway through said element to permit the film to be drawn to the interior thereof, and a film loop-removing pocket formed in said element for removing a loop formed in the film strip as it passes around the exterior of the element.

8. In an annular bearing for a centerfeed film-feeding apparatus, a substantially circular element of approximately the width of a film strip and having spaced journaling means at the top and bottom edges thereof, friction-reducing rollers carried by said journaling means and coacting 'respectlvely with the upper and lower margins of the film strip, a relatively narrow gateway through said element to permit the film to be drawn to the interior thereof, and a film loop-removing pocket formed in said element in advance of said gateway for removing a loop formed in the film strip as it passes around the exterior of the element;

9. In a film-feeding apparatus for feeding a film strip from' the center of a coil, a circular row of spaced friction-reduclng rollers forming an annular hearing about which the film coil rotates, a guard mem ber associated with said rollers to prevent the undesired passage of the film strip therebetween, said guard member having a relaplurality of film loop-removing pockets formed therein which serve to remove 'a loop formed in the film strip as it passes-around the exterior of the guard member.

10. In a film-feeding apparatus for feed-- ing a film strip from the center of a coil, a

circular row of spaced friction-reducing rollers forming an annular bearing about which the film coil rotates, a guard member associated with said rollers to prevent the undesired passage of the film strip therebetween, said guard member being provided with a pair of narrowly spaced film-guiding elements forming a gateway vthrough which the inner convolution of the coil is drawn to the interior of the row of bearing rollers, the trailing film-guiding element being substantially smaller in diameter than the lea-ding film-guiding element, so as to reduce the tendency of the bight of a loop formed in the film to enterthe gateway.

11. In an annular bearing for a centerfeed film-feeding apparatus, means for supporting substantially in a circle a plurality of spaced friction-reducing rollers adapted to cooperate with the margins of the film strip, and stationary means for bridging the spaces between a plurality of the rollers for preventing the entrance of the film strip therebetween, said stationary bridging means having a loop-removing pocket associated therewith between a pair of adjacent rollers by which a loop formed in the film strip is removed as it passes around the exterior of said bearing.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

FORREST JAMES KINCADE. 

